Seller safety centre
Most buyers are just buyers. A few tricks come up again and again, though, and they're easy to spot once you know them. The short version: keep messages, payment and postage inside the app, and never post until the order shows as paid.
Common scams and how to avoid them
These turn up on eBay, Vinted, Depop and every other selling app. The details change; the moves don't.
The fake “payment pending” email
How it works: You get an email or message that looks like eBay, Vinted or PayPal: the buyer has paid, but the money is “on hold” until you upgrade your account, pay a small fee, click a link or send the tracking number.
How to avoid it: Platforms don't hold payments hostage. Open the app yourself: a paid order shows as paid in your orders. Forward fakes to spoof@ebay.co.uk or phishing@vinted.com.
Paying outside the platform
How it works: The buyer offers a bit extra to pay by bank transfer, PayPal Friends and Family or another app, “to save the fees”. Then comes a fake screenshot, or a payment that gets reversed.
How to avoid it: Say no. Payments outside the app have no protection and break eBay's and Vinted's rules. On Vinted, only Buy now is covered.
Overpayment and “refund the difference”
How it works: The buyer “accidentally” pays too much and asks you to send back the difference, or to pay their courier for them. The original payment never really existed.
How to avoid it: Trust only the order amount in the app. Never send money to a buyer.
Their own courier
How it works: The buyer is abroad or buying for someone else, so a courier they arrange will collect. It comes with a fake payment, a courier fee for you to pay, or both.
How to avoid it: Use the platform's own postage, or an in-person collection agreed in the app once the order is paid.
The verification code trick
How it works: A buyer says the platform needs to “verify” you and asks you to read back the code you've just been texted. That code signs them in to your account, or approves a payment.
How to avoid it: Never share a code with anyone. If you have, change your password and turn on 2-step verification straight away.
Fake “receive your money” links and QR codes
How it works: A link or QR code leads to a page asking for your card details “to receive the payment”.
How to avoid it: You never need card details to get paid. Payouts are set up in the app's settings only.
“Not received” or the empty box
How it works: The buyer says the parcel never arrived or was empty, hoping for a refund and keeping the item.
How to avoid it: Always use tracked postage through the platform, keep proof of postage, and photograph the item packed and the sealed parcel with its label.
The swapped return
How it works: The buyer opens a “not as described” case and returns something else: an older, broken or fake version of your item.
How to avoid it: Record serial numbers and distinctive marks before posting, and photograph the returned parcel as you open it. Report a swapped return to the platform rather than arguing.
Meeting buyers for collection
- Agree everything in the app, so there's a record of who's coming, when and for how much.
- Meet somewhere public and busy, in daylight: a café, a supermarket car park, ideally with CCTV.
- If they must come to your home, have someone with you and keep the item by the door rather than inviting them in.
- On eBay, a collection order should be paid through eBay before handover, or paid in person if your listing offers that. Don't hand over an item for a promise to pay later.
- For cash, count it in front of them. For big amounts, a payment through the platform is safer than a bank transfer screenshot.
- Let the buyer check the item before they leave, so “not as described” disputes are less likely afterwards.
- Trust your gut: you can always cancel and post instead.
Protecting your address and phone number
- There's no need to share your phone number or email: eBay and Vinted pass everything a buyer needs through their own messages.
- Your address only appears where the platform needs it, such as on a postage label. Don't send it in messages before a sale is paid.
- With Vinted's shipping and drop-off points, the buyer doesn't need your home address at all.
- Check photos before listing: post on the doormat, house numbers, car number plates and family photos all give more away than you'd think.
- Use a different, strong password for your selling apps and your email.
Proof of postage and tracking
- Use the label the platform gives you whenever you can: it ties the tracking to the order automatically, which counts if there's a dispute.
- Always keep the receipt from the drop-off point or Post Office until the sale is finished and the buyer is happy.
- Take photos of the item packed, the sealed parcel and its label. Weighing it on the counter helps with “empty box” claims.
- For valuable items, choose a tracked service with signature and suitable cover.
- Never change the delivery address because a buyer asks in a message: send only to the address on the order.
If you've been scammed
- Paid something or shared card or bank details? Call your bank first, using the number on the back of your card.
- Shared a code or password? Change your passwords and turn on 2-step verification.
- Report the member and the messages in the app (on eBay, from the order or the member's profile; on Vinted, with Report on their profile or in the conversation). Don't delete the chat: it's your evidence.
- Forward phishing emails: eBay ones to spoof@ebay.co.uk, Vinted ones to phishing@vinted.com, and any scam email to the NCSC at report@phishing.gov.uk.
- Report the fraud to Report Fraud online or on 0300 123 2040 if you're in England, Wales or Northern Ireland (it replaced Action Fraud in December 2025). In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.
Account security
- Turn on 2-step verification on eBay, Vinted, PayPal and the email address they use. It stops most account takeovers.
- Phishing emails copy logos and sender names. Real ones from Vinted come from an address ending @vinted.co.uk, and real eBay messages also appear in your eBay Messages.
- Never sign in from a link in an email or text. Open the app or type the address yourself.
- Use a password manager, and a different password for each site.
- If a sign-in or code arrives that you didn't ask for, change your password: someone may have it.
Got a message that doesn't feel right?
Paste it into the free scam message checker. It runs in your browser and nothing is saved.
Check a messageQuestions
- Is it safe to sell on eBay and Vinted?
- Yes, as long as you keep messages, payment and postage inside the app. Almost every scam starts by moving one of those somewhere else.
- A buyer wants to pay by bank transfer. Is that OK?
- It's best not to. Neither of you is protected, it breaks eBay's and Vinted's rules, and fake transfer screenshots are common. Ask them to buy through the app.
- How do I know an email from eBay or Vinted is real?
- Check the order or message in the app itself. eBay says genuine messages also appear in your eBay Messages, and Vinted emails come from addresses ending in @vinted.co.uk. If it isn't in the app, treat it as fake.
- Who do I report a scam to in the UK?
- Your bank first if money has gone, then the platform, then Report Fraud (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Police Scotland on 101. Report Fraud replaced Action Fraud in December 2025.
- Should I give buyers my phone number for delivery?
- No. The platform's own postage and drop-off services don't need it, and it's a common way to move a chat off the app.
General guidance, not legal or financial advice. Platforms update their rules, so check the official pages linked here. Checked 1 November 2026.